Sportsmen Against Hunger Accepting Goose Meat
On a trial basis, North Dakota’s Sportsmen Against Hunger Program is accepting donations of goose meat taken during the early Canada goose season.
Much like the popular SAH deer donation program, hunters can bring in their goose meat to participating processors. However, hunters must remove the breast meat from the birds before processors can accept them.
Hunters can clean their geese at home prior to delivery to a processor, but breast meat brought from home without a wing or head attached to the meat, must be accompanied by written information that includes the hunter’s name, address, signature, hunting license number, date taken and species and number taken.
Hunters may also deliver geese directly from the field to a processor, but identification must remain attached to the bird until in possession of the processor.
Since no goose carcasses or feathers are allowed inside processing plants, hunters must be able to ensure proper disposal and clean-up of carcasses.
“We have 11 locations across the state that will handle goose donations,” said Ann Pollert, Executive Director of North Dakota’s Community Action Partnership, which sponsors SAH as part of its effort to serve low-income families across the state. “We’re kind of testing the waters this year to see if goose donations can work out as well as deer have in the past.”
The list of participating processors is available on the NDCAP website at http://www.capnd.org/sahprogram/.
Hunters interested in donating are encouraged to call processors before dropping off geese, to have a clear understanding of how goose breasts will be accepted and the processor’s hours of operation, Pollert said.
For more information, visit the CAPND website or contact Pollert at (701) 232-2452.
North Dakota’s early Canada goose season closes Sept. 7 in the Missouri river zone and Sept. 15 in the rest of the state, though goose meat is only accepted through Friday, Sept. 14. Daily bag limit is 15 with 30 in possession.
The early hunting season is intended to reduce local Canada goose numbers. Despite liberalized regulations the past several years, with longer seasons, large bag limits and expanded shooting hours the statewide population remains high, with numbers well above population goals. For additional information and regulations, hunters should refer to the Game and Fish Department website.
